Are you a Yoder Scholar?

The Yoder Scholars competition takes place during Honors Weekend, held each February. Participation is not required for entrance into the honors program; all students who meet the requirements for the honors program are invited to Honors Weekend and are eligible to enter EMU as honors students. Only those who wish to participate in the Yoder Scholars competition need to complete the Yoder Scholars tasks.

2014 recipients

About the competition

Each year only a few honors students are selected as Yoder Scholars and rewarded with EMU’s highest academic award: a full-tuition scholarship for all four years.

The EMU honors faculty conduct the Yoder Scholars competition, rigorously evaluating candidates’ academic performance, community and extra-curricular involvement, creativity, clarity of thought, and leadership potential. Participation in the competition requires candidates to construct a portfolio of their high school achievements, write a series of essays, and meet with a member of EMU honors faculty for a one-on-one interview.

Application process

Be sure to apply to EMU by November 1! In mid-November the EMU admissions office will send detailed instructions to all honors applicants who have expressed interest in the Yoder Scholars competition. Applicants need to have the following submitted/postmarked by January 16:

Two response pieces (see details below)

A substantial example of your academic efforts that include the evaluation and/or comments of the teacher who issued the assignment

An updated copy of your transcript that includes grades from the first semester of the current school year

The application process will culminate with an interview with a member of the honors faculty during Honors Weekend. Winning candidates are notified by mid-February of their selection to be a Yoder Scholar, and they have until March 15 to accept or decline the award.

Guidelines for essays

Complete the following two essays:

1. A 400-word essay that answers the following questions: Donald Rumsfeld once noted, “There are things we know that we know,… there are things that we know we don’t know,… [and] there are things we do not know we don’t know.” What do you know you know? What do you know you don’t know?

2. Creative Response: Your task is to tell us whatever it is you want to tell us through the medium of a blank 3×5 card used in whatever way you choose.

Please do not name your high school, self, or home area in either of these response pieces. Put your identification number on the first page of your essay (not your name) and attach it via a sticky note to your 3×5 card. Your identification number will be sent to you by EMU or you may contact your admissions counselor to get it.

If you’ve been invited to the honors weekend on February 6-7, 2015, please register online by January 16.